What is your slowest growing palm?

Here is mine. Buccaneer palm, Pseudophoenix sargentii. It is a florida native- actually likes this SoFla soil. You wouldn't know from the growth rate! It took one year since this leaf emerged to begin expanding the leaflets.

Slowest for me (well I've only got three species at present) is my Dypsis decaryi http://davesgarden.com/tools/journal/showimage.php?eid=159768 (this photo is in my journal so it may not show up for everyone, let me know). I purchased it in August 2007 and it has opened one leaf and started one new spike since then, which you can see in the link. That leaf is still NOT opening at all, although it is now much longer than it was in the photo I took in February, and it looks as if it will be the biggest leaf on the plant to date.

I've also got a couple of seriously retarded Washingtonia seedlings in small pots (under one gallon) which are also very slow but I'm not counting them as that is deliberate, and I know they will go berserk if I give them more room. (HEE HEE)

TTTFN, KK.

Looks nice, though. I like the structural element to that palm. Good to hear from you KK!

My Bottle Palm, Hyophorbe lagenicaulis (languish-call me if it lives).
If it were a boy, I would have named it Spike.
If it were a girl, I'd name it Brittany Spears.

It was one of those "ooh that's neat!" big box purchases that I just had to have, not realizing the actual growing conditions were not even close to what the information tag/spike thing said.

Wow. Britney. That's harsh, LOL!!!! What did the tag say, anyway? BTW, never trust BBS info. I'm sure you know that now!!! The truth is this palm starts slow and grows somewhat faster after some years, but is not really a fast grower or big palm ever per se compared to other species. H. vershaffeltii is nice. It gets big, has big caliper, and grows faster than it's cousin. If yours is not already in a pot, dig it up and put in one and keep it as a porch pet/novelty.

f4f, yours looks a little beat up. Maybe that is why it is slower then normal. It is stressed.

Also, If you think it is slow for you in FL, try growing it here in SoCal. 1 frond a year. P. ekmanii is like one per two years. My P. ekmanii started pushing a spear last May 2007. Over a year later and it is not even halfway to fully opened!

Venturan, treat it as an annual. Thanks to the big box store refund policy, you can take it back and get a new one each year. :)

f4f is right, H. vershaffeltii is a good plant and does well in 10b. I have 2 in 10a and they do fine if given sun. They do yellow in winter but by spring they green up actually.

I suppose that it is possible that it is stressed. I don't really have anything to compare mine to, so maybe I'll call the nursery where I got it and ask them how much their's grow a year. I can tell you this- as a "native" I pretty much plunked it in the soil, which is not what I do with any of my other palms. My DH is always saying how native nurseries have poor quality plants- not because they are growing native species- but because they do not use the same quality of soils and fertilizers that other nurseries do.

My slowest would be, hands down, a licuala spinosa seedling from seed germinated last summer, that is now crowling sloooowly to its second leaf.

But when they mean native they are referring to three islands in the keys (Sands Key, Elliott Key, Long Key). It is VERY rare in the wild and always has been in FL.

Though they finally all died, I had 6 Coccothrinax 'Blue' that I germinated from seed in 1995... by this year I had one left and it put out it's third leaf (a grass-like blade)... 3 immature grass-like leaves in 13 years... yikes. thankfully all my super slow palms eventually die... doesn't take much for a super slow palm to die... they are almost dead their whole life anyway. Now that slowpoke is replaced by my Actinokentia which I have had since 2001 and it's put out 3.5 leaves since... And I got it as a large gal from Hawaii! Yet that species seems pretty resilient... I am sure I will eventually lose it though. My Wodyetia which I got at 6' over all just opened it's 4th leaf in 5 years... not a record, but sure slow for a larger palm. I have a friend who is growing a Thrinax morissii (just changed genera to something like Hemithrinax) that he has had in the ground for 45 years now, and it's about 3' tall. I looks good, but shesh! That palm in Florida would be at least 10' tall by now. In California, super slow is almost normal (for palms).

Palmbob, I'm very surprised that your wodyetia is so slow (foxtail palm, right?). I have a bunch of seedlings from seed germinated exactly a year ago and a couple of them are now growing their 4th leaf already.

45 years and 3' tall! Wow.

Basilio, palms will grow differently in different environments.

WebInt- those 3 islands should have the same soil that we have in most of our yard, which is why I try to bring in species that like to grow in limestone soils. Anything else I have to dig down past the limestone clay to the sand so that I know it will drain, and dig out and backfill with amended soil. We still battle the soil chemistry in spite of that- there is a zamia that sits and does nothing every year until I drench it with a strong micronutrient amendment, and then it seems to push out a whole new set of leaves instantly.

Even though it's my fault probably, this Butia Capitata that I set here next to the hyophorbe Indica for comparison, it got to much water, and not enough light, it's two years old, and the Hyophorbe Indica's one year old, these are the two extremes in my collection, Ed

f4f, it is not soil but climate and location I was referring too. Sometimes when people think "FL native" they think mainland FL like a Sabel.

I was just reading in the plantfiles that a member who had several made a note that his only made one new leaf a year....so mine is more or less on track!

The guys at D'Asign Source Botanicals there in FL told me they get 2 - 3 new ones a year. Depending on the year. So your will speed up thanks to FL's climate. AZ and SoCal have colder winters which they do not care for. I notice that it takes mine until June to start growing again.

My Licuala peltata is prolly the slowwww-est growing thing in my yard. I've had it since last summer, and true it's a baby but it shows very little signs of life. I made the mistake of giving it too much sun... even morning sun is too much for these little guys to take, I guess?

In the background is a young blonde Chambey and they won't set any records for new fronds either... I think that one has opened an average of about two fronds a year... but compared to some of Palmbob's they must seem to be growing like Jack's beanstalks!

Hello again FOF and your Licuala!

WebInt- I wonder if age of the palm is a factor? From what I understand, it often is. I'll call Ray on Monday and ask him how old his are- since you have chosen that nursery as my "yardstick." They have the most complicated and labor intensive fertilization program in the industry, so that might put us right back to my original point, which is that is it most likely due to my assumption that a palm that evolved in high pH soils does not need the same amendments that I give to all my other palms. Here is the passage that I took my guidance from when I planted that guy:

"These palms are denizens of the coastal environment where the soil is calcareous and poor, the sun relentless, and the erratic rainfall is confined mainly to the summer; thus they are well adapted to seaside planting and hot regions with limey soils. They are all slow growing, some extremely so."

- "An Encyclopedia of Cultivated Palms"

f4f, remember that that is in nature. That does not mean that is what they prefer. Lots of palms have adapted to live off the minimums and grow in their natural environment. But in cultivation they are a completely different plants all together. A lot of the Cuban stuff is a great example. People see pictures of stuff in the wild and are unimpressed. Look at pictures of the same palm in cultivation, and people have a completely different outlook on it.

Funny you mention Ray. He was the one that sold me my palms. Including some large 25 gallon sargentii's amongst many other things. I did not know about the fact they have the most complicated and labor intensive fertilization program in the industry in FL. But it makes sense. Because they had the healthiest palms (including many hard to grow rare ones) I found on my trip there. This included Searle's, Croche, etc..

You took a paragraph out of Encyclopedia of Cultivated Palms. Maybe the reason your "yardstick" nursery is so good with growing is because one of the authors of that book is associated with D'Asign Source Botanicals. ;)

This message was edited Jul 20, 2008 8:30 PM

what is their fertilization program that makes them the most intensive and complicated? I would love to hear about it as I would be interested in replicating it if possible for my palms.

It's Paul Craft's regime, Tigerlily. You can probably ask someone on the International Palm Society's website.

Basically, Ray described my palm as in the stage between a "3 gallon" and a "7 gallon" in his experience. He said during this period they will sit and seem like they are doing nothing, but once they get a "real caliper" of 2.5"-3" they begin to grow at 3 to 4 leaves per year under his fert. program. He does a couple of things differently, one of which is a feeding in November in this zone (depending on how mild the weather is that year here and how many relatively warm days we are having- i.e. 70 degrees.)

See f4f, there is hope past 1 leaf a year. :) 3 - 4 is REALLY good for this slow growing palm.

My Arenga engleri, purchased as a five gallon plant three years ago, finally opened its first spear this summer. It has produced a subsequent spear; perhaps by the time it opens, my children will have kids of their own who will be around to appreciate it.

Remind me why we are so obsessively fascinated by this group of plants?

And, are the people on the Brugmansia forum laughing at us behind our backs? Their obsessions can go from seed to towering pillar of flowers in less time than it takes one of our precious foxtails to open a leaf.

Don't get me started. . .

I get a new frond on most of my Foxtails, every month, Ed

OOOH. I really want an Arenga engleri. I love the leaves and the full clump look, and the fragrance of the blooms is really powerful and sweet. I'm addicted to BOTH palms and brugs- should I just have someone shoot me now?

Many years ago they started a group called Plant Addicts Anonymous. The PAA folded up very quickly, for a number of reasons. Firstly, nobody came to meetings because nobody wanted to be CURED. Secondly, nobody came to meetings because nobody wanted to be ANONYMOUS so everyone talked about their addiction to everybody they met. Finally, nobody came to meetings because they were all far too busy out working in their gardens, admiring their gardens, looking at their friends gardens, and, when not doing any of the first three things, SLEEPING!

TTFN, KK.

Edited to add: Since I discovered DG, I have mostly given up the SLEEPING part! (It's 2.24am as I type this, and I have just woken up for the day!)

This message was edited Jul 23, 2008 3:25 AM

Welcome to the club, I just figured out today, that I spend about 22 percent of my waking hours with a hose in my hand!

that's my kind of club!

Yea. I get to water at home, and at work! KK, my Dypsis decaryi is showing good potential. I have had it only for four months, but it has already opened a new frond and is quickly pushing a new spike. Now my Ravenea rivularis makes a slug look fast. I had no Idea how much water they really needed if kept in a pot.

David

Mexican Fan palm, 3 years and just 1 foot tall.
My ponytail is 2nd but I have put it in a bigger pot and I think its about to take off and get bigger.

Lavina

Probably my slowest palm (I haven't seen it grow yet) is my Kentiopsis pyriformis. Palmbob saw me win that seedling at an auction. I wanted something to pass on to my children.

This message was edited Jul 23, 2008 10:45 PM

Great news on your Dypsis, David,
Aren't the triangles amazing looking things. As soon as I see some reliable warm weather here I am going to get that palm out of that one gallon pot it has been in since I purchased it. I have a feeling that some fresh soil and a bit more root room will make a LOT of difference to its growth rate.

On the other hand I am somewhat afraid to repot my two seedling Washingtonias but I'll probably have to do it soon; their most recent leaves have been smaller than the previous ones rather than larger, as is the norm with a seedling palm tree - they must be ALL root and no soil by now, they have been in their current pots for about 5 years! You guys will probably report me to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Plants, LOL!

TTFN, KK.

I will be impressed if you can keep it alive that long... I do not know many who have gotten this palm to live more than 3-4 years, even in a greenhouse (I sure havent)

What palm is that, Geoff? Ed

Kentiopsis pyriformis

Oh, never heard of it.

I believe that Satakentia also has a reputation for being difficult and that when younger they sometimes arbitrarily die.

Don't know about your climate but they are virtually impossible here in So cal unless you live in THE perfect climate.. and even then, they croak eventually... but K pyriformis is one of the slowest palms even in a perfect climate like Hawaii or new Caledonia... slow slow slow.. in So Cal, that translates into mostly dead... until it's really dead.

LOL! I know it's not funny, but you are still cracking me up. It's like you are writing poetry and I am dying with the palm as I read your writing.

Geoff certainly has more knowledge then me but I actually disagree with K. pyriformis. I know a few growers in SoCal with this plant and it has been doing very well. One friend of mine has said it grows slower then Oliviformis, but faster then Magnifica or Piersoniorum. I have the last three and can confirm Magnifica and Piersoniorum are about 1 new leaf a year for me. Again, I do not have K. pyriformis to make a judgment. But I trust the growers that I know that have this and theirs seems to be in good shape. So who knows.